For Those Who Are Precious
by Grey Lord
Summary: When Naruto returns to Konoha, will the people he swore to protect accept his sacrifice, or will he be rejected again? NaruIno, onesided NaruSaku. Set just after the Sasuke retrieval mission. on hiatus
1. Chapter 1

ScionOfKyuubi here with my first Naruto fic! Reviews give me life!

Summary: When Naruto returns to Konoha, will the people he swore to protect accept his sacrifice, or will he be rejected again? NaruIno, one-sided NaruSaku.

Warning: Rated T for (hopefully) mild violence, bad words.

Disclaimer: I ain't making money off of this. _Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto-sama. So does my dignity.

Unseen Love 

**Earlier in the day:**

Uzumaki Naruto had been certain this would not end well.

His best friend and rival, Sasuke, had just abandoned the Leaf Village, and Naruto was going after him.

In theory, this had been a good idea.

In practice, it sucked.

He had started out with a team of the rookie genin (and chunnin): Shikamaru, Neji, Kiba, Chouji, and Shino.

However, soon after leaving Konoha, they had been forced to split up. Shikamaru had been accosted by a strange kunoichi from Otogakure, the Village Hidden in Sound, and things had gone to hell from there.

Now, of the five nins from Konoha, Naruto had been the only one still on the trail of Sasuke.

Naruto heard the sound of rushing water, and sped up. He knew there was a waterfall close by, and Sasuke might have stopped for a bit.

He had stepped out, intent on talking to the raven-haired avenger.

Sasuke had not wanted to talk.

Everything else was a blur.

Present Time 

Naruto staggered out of the woods, bleeding profusely from the massive wounds all over his body.

It was taking everything Naruto had in him, including Kyuubi's power to keep from dropping dead on the spot. He was thanking Kami for making Sasuke's aim being really crappy, or he probably would have been dead already from the Chidori Sasuke had plunged through his chest. He coughed, feeling blood come up his windpipe.

Through, blurred, half-blind blue eyes, he saw the massive gates of Konoha loom before him. He sighed. This mess was going to take a lot of explaining to baa-chan. Abruptly, his vision wavered, and he managed to slide to the ground against a tree before it went completely black. He could have sworn he saw platinum blonde as he fell unconscious.

Ino's POV 

Yamanaka Ino was in the middle of yet another boring, dreary D-class mission: find a lost cat.

She'd been walking in the forest around Konoha for nearly an hour, and was about to just call it quits when she heard a faint groan from the dirction of the main gates. Intrigued, she hopped down for her tree-jumping search, and immediately saw a massive amount of blood all over the forest floor. She swallowed her revulsion, and followed the blood trails to their end. She was horrified to see the loud, hyper blonde teammate of her friend Sakura, lying against a tree in a pool of his own blood. She immediately sprinted to the main gates and yelled for an ANBU. Immediately, a wolf-masked ANBU poofed into existence, and gestured for her to slow down. "What's wrong, Yamanaka-san?" the jounin asked quietly. "Uzumaki Naruto is bleeding to death against a tree thirty feet behind you; that's what!" she yelled at the nin, who whirled and was at Naruto's side in less than a second.

**Normal POV**

_Wow, that was fast_, Ino thought. She hurried to the bleeding Naruto and realized that he desperately needed serious medical help, NOW. The ANBU had apparently come to the same conclusion, and was gingerly lifting the battered boy onto his back. "I need you to tell Tsunade-sama that Naruto has been mortally wounded, and that Kakashi is taking him to to the hospital. Go NOW." Ino nodded dumbly, seeing the ANBU rip off his wolf-mask to reveal the trademark mask of Naruto's sensei. She turned, and began sprinting along the village rooftops, heading for the Hokage tower. She wondered what Naruto had done to receive such a grave wound, and shuddered when she remembered that his last mission had been to retrieve Sasuke. Contrary to popular belief, Ino was not interested in the brooding Uchiha, thinking him snobbish and rude. She only acted like she did to get a rise out of Sakura, which was one of her favorite pastimes. She unconsiouly sped up, reaching the Hokage tower. In less than a minute she was at the massive doors, and instead of knocking or waiting for someone, she merely blew the doors open with a wind jutsu, sprinting up the stairs to the Hokage's office.

Tsunade was doing some of the massive amounts of paperwork on her desk, distractedly waiting for news of Naruto's mission to retrieve the Uchiha brat. She heard the massive doors downstairs slam into the walls, and heard a set of feet pounding up the stairs. She jumped out of her chair, seeing her door crash open. She vaguely recognized the Yamanaka girl from Team 10, and signalled for the girl to start talking. The girl, Ino, was obviously winded, but began spilling a slew of words that Tsunade couldn't understand. "Woah, whoa, slow down, girl, I can't understand a word you're saying," she told her. "Tsunade-sama, Naruto has been mortally wounded, and Kakashi-sensei is rushing him to the hospital." Tsunade processed this, then blew out of the room like a controlled cyclone, ignoring the door, and merely jumping through the window to reach the street below, leaving a stunned Yamanaka behind.

Chapter One END

What do you think? I'm not very good at dialogue, please e-mail if you have advice! Review PLZ!


	2. Chapter 2

I'm back! Chappy 2 is here! BOOYAH!

Unseen Love

Ino was pacing outside Naruto's hospital room. Tsunade-sama was passed out inside, after she had operated on the hyper blonde fuzzball for nearly two and a half-hours. The ANBU outside his door wasn't letting her in, so Ino finally threw up her hands and decided to run to the cafeteria for a quick snack. However, when she got to the elevator, she was surprised to see Sakura inside, heading downstairs; probably for lunch. "Hey Sakura," Ino said quietly. Sakura was surprised; Ino hadn't even called her forehead girl. Immediately worried, she asked, "Ino, is something wrong?" Ino shook he head, and forced a cheerful grin. "Nah, nothing's wrong, forehead. Just worried about everybody, that's all." "Yeah, I bet. Shikamaru, Shino, and Kiba should be out of the hospital by tomorrow." "How do you know? And for that matter, why are you even at the hospital?" Sakura sighed. "Pig, you apparently are unaware that I actually work here, as an apprentice to Tsunade-shishou. I know about the boys because Hokage-sama has me checking them every six hours, but the one person I haven't seen in the hospital is that bastard Naruto. If he isn't even in the hospital, then just what the hell was he doing on that stupid mission, anyways? That stupid dead-last obviously didn't he fought Sasuke-kun, so he clearly broke his promise to bring back Sasuke-kun. Pfft. Some 'promise of a lifetime'. If I see him, I'll knock his block off."

**SMACK!**

Sakura slowly brought her hand up to her stinging cheek. She whirled to hit Ino, but her hand stopped halfway there.

Ino looked like a volcano about to blow its top. Her fists were clenched, and inching for her kunai pouch. "Sakura. If you work here, do you know why is Hokage-sama passed out from chakra depletion right now? Do you know where Naruto is right now, either? Go up to room 39B, and take a good, long look at what's left of the person lying in that bed. And then come to the shop. You and I obviously need to talk." With that, Ino stormed out of the elevator and stomped out of the hospital, muttering some rather foul insults about selfish, idiotic, pink-haired kunoichi.

Sakura stood in the now-empty elevator, wondering about Ino's words. The only way Tsunade-shishou could have depleted her chakra was if she had to bring someone back from near-death. And why had Ino mentioned Naruto, since he wasn't in the hospital by any indication. B-Wing is where they put extremely fragile patients after operations involving life-or-death situations. Sakura was slowly getting a sick feeling in her gut, when she finally realized Ino's words: "_Take a good, long look at what's left of the person laying in that bed…"_ Without thinking anymore, she dove out of the closing elevator doors and began sprinting up the nearby stairs.

Ino was so pissed, she was actually having trouble seeing straight. The complete and utter _nerve_ of Sakura, calling Naruto dead-last. The person who had started that name was Sasuke, and he was a traitor! And now Sakura was calling Naruto-kun a liar! Ino was certain she was about kill the next person who looked at her wrong, and she was…whoa, whoa, WHOA! Naruto-_kun_? She had never even thought of Sasuke as worthy of the –kun suffix. She'd only used it because it pissed off Sakura. So why the hell was she attaching it to Naruto's name? Deep in thought, she didn't look where she was going and predictably plowed right into a passerby, sending both of them to the ground. She yelped as her butt hit the ground, and hastily looked up and began to apologize. "Gomen, Iruka-sensei, I'm sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going! Please forgive me!" Iruka merely chuckled, and helped Ino up from the sidewalk. He dusted off his pants and asked, "What were you thinking about so deeply, Ino-chan?" She flushed a rather fetching shade of maroon at this, and hastily lied, "Umm, you see, all the boys just got back from their mission, and I just left the hospital. I was worried about everyone." "Ah, I see. So, did Naruto get back as well, then? I said I'd treat him to ramen when he got back." "Well, yes he did, but he's…well, he isn't exactly, um in the best of shape." Iruka's smile immediately disappeared, and he pulled Ino into a small café. "What do you mean? What happened to him? Is he going to be alright? When did you see him? Is he…" Iruka began firing rapid questions at the now-flustered Ino. "Sensei, slow down, I can't understand what you're asking." Iruka took a deep breath, and started over. "When did he get back?" "He got back about two-three hours ago." What happened to him? Why was he in the hospital?" "Well, when I found him in the forest outside the village, he was losing a LOT of blood, and he actually had a hole through his chest the size of a grapefruit. Kakashi-sensei rushed him to the hospital…"

"…And that's when I guess I ran into you, sensei." Ino leaned back in her chair, having fully recounted the last two and a half hours to Iruka-sensei. Her story had attracted a small crowd at the tiny café, consisting of her sensei, Asuma, Kurenai-sensei, Ebisu-sensei, Konohamaru, and a strange, white-haired man that she found out later was Jiraiya-sama, the Legendary Toad Sannin, who had been Naruto's sensei for a short while during the chunnin exams. The scarred chuunin's face had lost all color when Ino told him about the full extent of Naruto's injuries. Jiraiya-sama had informed her that the hole in Naruto's chest had most likely been caused by Sasuke's Chidori technique, and that the burns all over Naruto's body had been chakra-based. She'd also found out Naruto had a bloodline limit that allowed him to heal from almost any wound, very quickly. She realized that must have been the reason that the jounin had been shocked to hear that Naruto had nearly died. Kurenai-sensei had broken down crying when she had sadly told them of Tsunade-sama's attempts at healing the loudmouth genin, and how Naruto's heart had actually stopped beating several times during the Hokage's operations. She told them Naruto's room number, and everyone but Jiraiya-sama had immediately headed for the hospital to see their students and Naruto.

"So you say that Naruto had burns on his palms?" Jiraiya asked her quietly. She looked at the Sannin oddly for a moment, then nodded. "Why, Jiraiya-sama? Did Sasuke cause those, too?" She asked bitterly. She really hated Sasuke now. "No, he didn't. Naruto must have used the technique I taught him more than he should have." Ino leaned forward. Now _that _was interesting. Offhand, she couldn't think of any jutsus that would burn your hands, apart from a few Katon justu that she knew Sasuke used. But those could only burn you if you stuck your hand in front of them while executing the technique. She quietly asked, "What's the name of the technique, Jiraiya-sama? I didn't know there were jutsus that can hurt the person who casts them, except for kinjutsu." The old hermit sighed. _I'm going to regret telling her this…_ "It's called the Rasengan." He explained. "It's an S-ranked wind-type jutsu that requires no seals. It does however, require extremely good chakra control. The person concentrates chakra into a spinning ball in their hand, then thrusts it into the target. On the surface, it appears to do little damage, but on the inside, it shreds through most anything like a tornado made of knives. However, if you put too much chakra into the ball, it will scorch your hands. Now I hate to just leave you here, but I need to go talk to Kakashi." With that, he disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Ino got up, paid for the coffee, and began walking slowly towards home. _Naruto, will you ever cease to amaze people?_ She wandered along, thinking of the hyper blonde genin as she did.

End chapter 2, Unseen Love

Reviews give me life! Tell me what you think, and if you have requests for non-yaoi oneshots, I write those, too!


	3. Chapter 3

Scionofkyuubi here. I'm back; the story is still on.

To a smart reviewer:

DarkMan: how the BEEP did you know those are two of my fave pairings? Hell yeah, I'll do some oneshots like that!

Everyone who told me that my story was good: WAAAH! I LOVE YOU ALL sniffles You like me, you really like me!

Warning: There will be some Sakura-bashing in this fic. I did warn you. Know this, though… I don't hate Sakura; I just need her to be a bitch for the sake of the pairing.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto…yet.

Unseen Love

Chapter Three

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEE-**CRUNCH**!

"Stupid clock, waking me up when I need my beauty sleep," Ino muttered, thinking evil thoughts about mornings in particular and alarm clocks in general. She groggily swung her legs out of bed, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She stood and stretched, then headed to her bathroom to wake up with a shower.

**Thirty minutes later**

"Shit!" Ino cursed. She was currently in the process of trying to find her sandal, which somehow had walked off during the night. She'd already stubbed her toe, fallen over, and shattered several porcelain figurines from her nightstand. She couldn't believe she'd slept until nine o' clock, normally she was up and headed for training by seven. She finally located the elusive sandal, crammed it on her foot, and leaped out the window to the street below, deciding it would be much quicker than running downstairs and out the door. She took off like a shot for the hospital, knowing that Asuma-sensei had given her the day off to go see Shika and Chouji in the hospital. She decided to see Naruto, if she could get past that moronic ANBU posted at his door. She had no idea why she was getting so worked up over the fuzzball. _It's not like we're lifelong friends or anything, so why am I so worried about him?_ She shrugged inwardly and sped through the hospital doors, tossing a wave to the receptionist, who merely nodded and went back to her crossword puzzle. _Alright then, 27C, 25A, 39B. Shika, Chouji, then Naruto._ She still wondered about the strange looks that she'd seen the villagers giving Naruto yesterday. It had been like some weird cross between hate and fear.

She stopped outside Shikamaru's room and knocked on the door. When no one answered, she pushed open the door and stuck her head in. Not very surprisingly, the bed was empty, signalling the lazy Chunnin's departure. _He must have been released yesterday._ Upon reaching Chouji's room, she knocked again, to be greeted with a cheerful, "Come in!" from the bedridden Akimichi. She bounced in, giving Chouji a big smile and slipping him a few bags of chips. He gave her a huge smile; the hospital staff had confiscated all of his snacks, leaving him rather hungry. She sat next to Chouji for about half an hour, chattering happily with her now-lean teammate while he devoured his chips. He asked her where Shikamaru was, and she told him that he'd been released yesterday. He then bombarded her with questions about the team, and she told him the status of everyone. However, she skipped over Naruto, hoping he'd forget him, but no such luck.

"Hey, wait a minute, you forgot to tell me how Naruto's doing, Ino. I mean, did he even come back after the mission?" She sighed. This was definitely going to suck.

She decided to just be blunt. It would only cause trouble later if she sugarcoated it. "Chouji, Naruto-kun is in critical condition right now. I found him bleeding to death outside the West Gate, and Tsunade-sama had to operate on him for over two hours. They've got an ANBU posted outside his door, and he's been in a coma since his operation... He will most likely pull through, but he's probably going to be depressed for a while."

Chouji was stunned. What could possibly cause Konoha's number one prankster ninja to get depressed?

"How'd he get injured so badly, Ino? I thought he was supposed to talk to Sasuke."

"Sasuke didn't want to talk and he attacked Naruto. They fought at the Valley of the End, and Sasuke ended up ramming two Chidoris through his chest. The only reason he isn't dead right now is because he has some sort of bloodline limit that allows him to heal almost impossibly fast. Kakashi-sensei told me that he saw some guy stab Naruto through the stomach with a katana once, and all Naruto did was look at him funny."

"Woah. But he is gonna be okay, right, Ino? I mean, he is Naruto, after all."

"Yeah, Tsunade-sama said he'll pull through. As a matter of fact, I'm gonna go up to his room and check on him right now."

"Okay. Be sure to come back and fill me in on how he's doing!"

"I will, Chouji."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Ino bounded up the stairs to the third floor. When she reached the landing, she saw that Naruto's ANBU guard had left for the moment, probably answering nature's call. She wasted no time, dashing to the door and slipping inside, closing the door silently behind her. She froze in shock when she saw the battered form of the blonde shinobi on the bed.

Naruto lay motionless on the bed, connected to an EKG, something she thought might measure brain waves, two IV's, a blood transfusion connected to his arm, and a heart monitor. He was wrapped in so many bandages that he bore a real resemblance to a mummy, and he also had a mask on his mouth, presumably an oxygen tube. His eyes were closed, and his hair was still matted in dried blood. If not for the blood-soaked bandages, he would've looked like he was just asleep. She padded over to the chair beside his bed and sat down in shock, still staring at his still form.

"Yo."

Ino nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a voice speaking in what she could have sworn was an empty room. She leaped from the chair, yanking out a kunai and taking up a defensive position in front of the fallen shinobi.

"Cool off, babe. I ain't gonna hurt Big Bro. Gramps just told me to come look for him, that's all." She still was looking wildly around the room, searching for the apparently invisible enemy.

"Who's there? Show yourself!"

"Down here, babe."

Ino looked down, expecting the worst, only to see… a frog? Okay, it _was_ wearing a miniature Konoha hitai-ate. Cute. She put away her kunai and squatted next to the little critter. He hopped over to her side and she picked him up, curious.

"So who are you?" she asked the frog.

"Name's Gimchi. I'm one of Big Bro's summons. Gramps sent me to check on…AAAAH! BIG BRO! WHAT HAPPENED TO BIG BRO? HOW'D HE GET SO BEAT UP?" Gimchi was shrieking at the top of his little lungs, but Naruto didn't even stir. Ino shushed the distraught amphibian, petting him gently to quiet him down. "Sasuke attacked him, they fought for a while, and Sasuke used an assasination jutsu on him."

"The icy bastard tried to kill Naruto? Holy shit! Why didn't Naruto just summon Gramps and squish him flat?" Gimchi questioned.

"Well, Tsunade-sama asked that he be brought back alive. Although Naruto did beat the living crap out of Sasuke." Ino explained to the tiny toad. Gimchi nodded, unhappy but acceptant of the situation.

"So he's gonna be okay then?"

"Yeah, he'll pull through"

"Well then, I'm better go back and tell Gramps that. See ya later." And with a small _poof_ of chakra smoke, the little guy was gone.

Ino sat back down, deciding to wait for Naruto to wake up.

Sorry it's short, I wrote this chappy at two in the morning.

Next time:

Naruto has a talk with Kyuubi, and Sakura thinks about Naruto and Sasuke.

Ja Ne!

ScionOfKyuubi


	4. Chapter 4

ScionofKyuubi here! Chapter 4! Thank you for reviewing thus far! I love you all! Glomps reviewers

Reviewer notice:

Tirzah: That does sound interesting,I think I'll try it!

Don't Really Care: No, I haven't read Foxhound, I'll check it out...

Summary: After returning without Sasuke, Naruto is in a coma in the hospital. Even unconscious, he's managing to confuse people, namely Ino, who struggles with a sudden attarction to the fox vessel. This chapter, Naruto has a heart-to-heart with Kyuubi. While this occurs, Ino has fallen asleep next to him. Originally, I was going to have Sakura reflecting on Team Seven's 'glory days' later in the chapter (Well, she'd actually just been mooning over her precious Sasuke-bastard). Then I got this idea. So that's next chapter.

Disclaimer: Do you think I own Naruto? Well, I don't. I do own an undying love for the NaruAnko pairing, though.

"Blah" regular speech

"**Blah**" Kyuubi talking

"_Blah_" thinking

Unseen Love

Chapter 4

Naruto groaned, wondering what the hell had run over him. He felt like Kyuubi had just stepped on him and smashed him flat, then stomped on him a couple times for good measure. He cracked open one eye warily, expecting the light to hurt his sensitive eyeballs, but all he saw was a dim hallway, lined with pipes, puddles on the floor, and smelling like the wrong end of a fart. _Ah hell, I was hoping I wouldn't be coming back here for a while. Kuso1, but I hate this place._

Naruto stood and stretched, cracking his bones back into place. He felt a little better, like his spine was no longer bent almost double. "Ah well, better go find the furball," he muttered none too happily. He set off along the dank hallway.

After what felt like a century, he began to see a crimson light ahead, lighting a giant room. He hurried into a room dominated by a massive cage, the door lock covered by a paper with the kanji for 'seal' on it. He stepped into Kyuubi's view, but was careful to make sure he was out of reach of the massive fox demon.

"Greetings, your fuzziness. Why the hell did you drag me in here this time, baka fox?"

"**Silence, insolent mortal. I called you in here because you're dying out there.**"

"Why the hell am I dying? I thought it was your job to make sure that didn't happen, fox."

"**The electricity in the Uchiha's attack seems to have shorted out your brain, human. While you were fighting the bastard, you sucked down too much of my chakra. If I send you any more, you will permanently change into a… well, I guess because you're human, you'd become a _hanyou2_. I get the feeling you probably would not enjoy furry ears sticking out of the top of your head."**

"And just what the hell is a hanyou, furball? I happen to be a human, not a demon. So how in Kami's name would I grow fuzzy ears?"

"**Mortal, a hanyou is someone who is half-human, half-demon. The ears would be a side effect of having demonic energy coursing through your veins. I'm not sure, but you might grow a tail or five, too."**

"Okay I DEFINITELY do not need five tails on my butt. I have enough trouble with the villagers right now, thank you very much. The ears actually sound kinda cool, though."

"**Well, I'm not sending you any chakra unless you tell me to right here. You have to choose if you want to continue being a ninja by becoming a half-demon, or heal on your own and be normal. However, your body is in a rather bad way. If you choose the second path, I must warn you that it would take a bit over five years to be able to completely heal your wounds. On the other hand, if you choose the first path, you will become even more of an outsider than you already are. You would likely be kicked out of your village, declared a dangerous missing-nin, and then killed by hunter-nin. If you lived, you'd be the most powerful being in existence. You would also gain a host of abilities, like a summoning contract with my kin, your senses would become extremely sharp, etc., etc. You must tell me now the path you choose. I'm not letting you leave until you decide."**

"Hmm. I'll need to think this one over. Wait, what happens to you if I choose the first idea? Do you get loose or what?"

"**As wonderful as that would be, no. The only difference is that we would be able to talk to each other outside of this cesspool. On a side note, why don't you change the décor in here? Is your mind really that dirty?"**

"Nah, I'm just too lazy to be bothered with it. Hmm. Gimme an hour to think about this, furball."

"**Call me furball again and I will devour your soul while shredding your body into a million tiny pieces. You have one hour."**

_Fifty-five minutes later_

"I've decided, fox."

"**And your choice is, mortal?"**

"I will become a half-demon. I'm going to need all the power I can get. Plus, you know the promise I made to Sakura-chan. I'm going to bring back the icy bastard, no matter what. Besides, like I said earlier…the ears sound kinda cool."

"**Just so you know, brat, this is going to hurt like the nine levels of hell themselves. If you weren't already unconscious, you'd certainly pass out from the pain in less than two seconds. Are you sure this is what you want?"**

"Yeah, it is. After all, it's not the like the villagers will ever stop hating me, right? So what the hell. Let's go wild."

"**Fine. From now on I'm going to call you Kit."**

"What the hell for?"

"**Because you will be a lesser fox-demon. You'll be like a son to me."**

_A son to the greatest demon in history. That doesn't sound too bad. After all, I could be a lot worse off._

"**Let's begin, shall we?"**

"Yes, let's."

In the outside world, Ino had fallen asleep. She'd been sitting next to Naruto for nearly five hours now, and she was beginning to worry. She had no clue why, but she wanted the loudmouth to wake up and smile that shit-eating grin of his again. She wanted to hear him laugh again.

As this mildly interesting montage of thoughts rolled through her sleeping brain, Ino stirred. She woke up, yawned, and then stretched her arms over her head. She looked sadly at the battered shinobi in the bed. As she stared, her eyes traveled over his face. She stiffened. Had Naruto's eyes just flickered?

There! They had flickered, for just a second. She leaned closer, trying to get a better look at his fluttering eyes.

His eyes snapped open.

And Ino realized something was wrong.

Because she might not have known Naruto that well, but even she knew Naruto's eyes were blue.

Not red.

Before she could do anything, though, a shockwave of crimson chakra had exploded from Naruto's supine form. The blast of life energy blew her into the wall, and knocked the door clean off its hinges. The window shattered, showering glass all over the tree outside. The ANBU guard leaped into the room, looking for an attacker, and was immediately hurled against the wall by a whirlwind of chakra.

Ino stared in awe as Naruto levitated off the bed, supported by chakra. The whirlwind had turned into a chakra firestorm, and she watched as Naruto become enveloped in its essence. She gazed at the floating form of the blonde ninja, and started as Naruto began to scream.

No, he wasn't screaming.

He was howling.

Not in tears, or in pain.

Howling like an animal.

She saw his canine teeth grow to a length that made him resemble an Inuzuka.

She watched, as his fingernails became claws.

She stared, as his bandages were burned off, revealing the rapidly healing wounds on his torso.

She gaped, as his hair bacame streaked with red, changing before her eyes.

And she stared at him as two fluffy silver fox-ears popped into existence on the top his head, and his human ears simply _disappeared_.

Seeing him transform into a beast like this, she did the only logical thing she could think of.

She fainted.

(1) Kuso: damn, hell.

(2) Hanyou: Half-demon

Ooh, what's next? Even I don't know! Review please!

Does anyone think they can draw half-demon Naruto? If so, please e-mail me!

Ja Ne!

ScionofKyuubi


	5. Chapter 5

ScionofKyuubi here with Chapter 5. Holy cow, I cannot believe that I've got over 50 reviews. That's just…wow. Thank you all. Oh, and for the record, Naruto is not fusing with Kyuubi. He has merely taken in so much _youki (_demonic energy) that his body is becoming demonic in nature. Fusing Naruto with Kyuubi has been done, and I want originality in my fics. Besides, I just enjoy writing Kyuubi's character too much to get rid of him. Naruto will have a night when he turns fully human again. I can't decide on whether it should be the full moon or the new moon. Personally, I'm leaning towards the full moon. Tell me what you think.

He is becoming a hanyou, like Inuyasha. I don't see the villager's attitudes towards him changing anytime soon. This is not going to be a fic with a lippity-skippity, fa-la-la everyone's happy ending. I hate fics like that. Sometimes people need to realize that the world is a cruel, selfish place.

I've got someone drawing me a piccy with what I've got Naruto looking like now that he is a hanyou. Let me just say that it will be KICKASS! I'm giving Naruto a completely fresh look. He'll have a new weapon, too. It's a…nah, I'll just tell you next chappy. Oh screw it; IT'S A CHAIN WHIP! I also challenge my readers to think up a name for this weapon.

And who was the strange guy who's so convinced I'm a chick? I've deleted your post and blocked you. I don't appreciate people who hunt me down, convinced they know who I am, and try to send, like, forty e-mails to someone they don't know. That's harassment and I'm not going to take that. I happen to be a guy, and I'm damn proud of it.

Anyways, don't be afraid to just flame away. I need a good laugh sometimes.

Oh, by the way, "ur story sux mine roolz" is not constructive criticism.

On with the story!

Unseen Love

Chapter Five

Naruto realized that he should be in pain.

He was sucking down Kyuubi's chakra at an insane rate, had physically changed form, caused some blonde chick who'd been in his room to faint, and knocked an ANBU out of his room—through the wall.

But it didn't hurt.

It felt good.

And he felt like a god with all this power.

Naruto looked down at his chest, mildly surprised that his wounds were gone. He'd thought it would take a lot longer than that. Of course, he had no clue what he'd become. He remembered that the baka fox had said something about being half-demon, gaining immense power, blah, blah, blah. He began to take inventory of what had changed. Grabbing a mirror from the bedside table, he took stock.

The most notable, he realized, were his eyes. No longer blue, they were a slit-pupil crimson. He saw that his hair was streaked with crimson as well, and his bangs were completely red.

He freaked when he realized his ears were gone. _Shit, when I said that the ears sounded cool, I was just joking! I didn't think the damn furball would actually DO it!_

_**It's not like I chose what to alter and what not to alter, mortal.**_

_Kyuubi? How the FUCK are you talking in my head? And where the hell are my ears, baka!_

_**It's a side effect of the demonic energy you now possess. Since you are now a half-demon, you can hear my thoughts more clearly. Before, I was forced to mentally scream at you for you to hear me. On the topic of your new ears, I have found that human females seem to find the furry ears to be adorable rather than disgusting. Males tend to become jealous.**_

_Oh well. I hate to admit it, but they are kind of…cute._

_**Acceptance is the first step in admitting you have a problem.**_

_Oh, shut up._

_**Gladly. I think talking to you is making my brain cells atrophy.**_

_Bite me._

_**No thanks, I prefer white meat.**_

_Just shut UP, Fox._

_**Fine.** _Kyuubi mock-pouted and withdrew to his cell.

Naruto dropped the mirror and began to inspect the rest of his body. He realized he must have grown quite a bit, since his pants were now several inches shorter in the leg. He knew from the odd feeling in his mouth that his canine teeth had grown an inch or two. His hair was now mid-back length, and he felt like a girl. He decided to cut it to a manageable length later. His abs and chest were ripped, like he'd been training for weeks on end. He decided he liked this change. He was no longer the scrawny midget he'd been before. By far the most interesting, however, was his seal.

He'd seen it a long time ago. He knew what it looked like, and could reproduce it perfectly on paper. Hell, sometimes he saw it in his sleep. But now, his seal was cracked cleanly in half, a jagged crimson line dividing it in two. He grinned. Ero-sennin was going to FREAK when they saw this. His fingers had become his berserker-claws, and he truly felt capable of taking on the world alone right now.

His gaze shifted to the blond girl who'd fainted when she saw him transform. He walked over to her, wondering who she was. _Oh yeah! She's the chick who was always glomping Sasuke-bastard to piss Sakura-chan off. Hmph. Wonder what the hell she's doing here. Probably wants to chew me out for not returning her "precious Sasuke-kun" to Konoha. Pfft. I almost feel sorry for the poor bastard. Almost._

Naruto was about to walk past when his conscience tugged at him. He sighed, and then turned around. He picked up the girl and laid her carefully on the bed. _Damn, but she's pretty._ _Too bad she always went for icy bastard._ He sighed, then noted the ANBU he'd blown away was laying in a rather awkward position, with his feet above his head and pieces of the table that he must been sent flying through scattered all over the hall

He knew he needed to find someplace out-of-the-way and figure out the extent of what was going on. He winced, feeling the too-tight hospital pants cutting off circulation to his lower body. First though, he was going to need some new clothes. He decided to get a new weapon, too. And not just some kunai and shuriken, either. It would be his own weapon.

He smiled.

Things were looking up.

Ha HA! Chappy five is done! As always, REVIEW! I need them to survive. Well, that and chocolate. Mmm…chocolate. Anyways, Chapter Six will be Ino waking up, and Naruto is going SHOPPING! And since no one recognizes him, he's going to have a bit of girl trouble…O.O

Ja Ne!

ScionOfKyuubi


	6. AN Bad News

ScionofKyuubi here with a little bad news.

I am sorry to report to my readers that I was hit by a car yesterday. The impact shattered my left wrist and broke five ribs on the left side of my chest. My wrist is now in a cast. Unfortunately, this means I will have to cut back on my updates, 'cuz I can only type one-handed now. Fear not, though. I shall valiantly continue to type! For until now, I HAVE NOT YET BEGUN TO TYPE! (Okay, bad joke.)

Also, I'd like to issue a challenge. I challenge anyone to write a good NarutoKim Possible crossover. My only wish is for the pairing to be KimNaruto

Apologies, please don't flame, and have fun writing,

ScionofKyuubi


	7. Beta Chap Six

ScionofKyuubi here with Chappy Six of Unseen Love! Sorry, I know these chapters are all on the short side, but I just can't seem to write more than four pages per chapter. Again, I wanna thank every freaking reviewer, you guys are the best! (Begins tossing cookies). I'm having a bit of trouble uploading the Hanyou Naruto piccy, but I hope to have it up by next week. This is also going to be the first chappy that exceeds three pages. And now…ON WITH THE FIC!

All right, this is the beta'ed version. Everyone give a shout to my beta _gneas brais aingel_! If it wasn't for her, this chapter would probably look a whole lot worse. If anyone was reading when I deleted chapter six, dude, totally sorry. Remember to review!

These are the words to the song I was listening to as I wrote this chapter. I know it's not the whole song, but I feel this is the most profound part. Hell, I can think of songfics I could do with this song. And no, it has absolutely nothing to do with the story. Unless you count how Sakura dumps Na…damn! That wasn't supposed to slip out. And I don't own Kelly Clarkson, either, so back, you curs! Back, I say! 

_I'll find someone to live for in this world,_

_There's no light at the end of the tunnel tonight,_ _Just a bridge that I've gotta burn._

_You were wrong…._

_If you thought you could walk right through my door._

_That is just so you_

_Coming back_

_When I've finally moved on._

_I'm already gone._

Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto-sama owns _Naruto_. He also owns my social life (or lack thereof).

Chapter Six

Unseen Love

Naruto growled, he hated ANBU and it seemed like there were eight quadrillion of them in the immediate vicinity. He really didn't need to be stopped by an ANBU, wearing only a pair of too-short hospital pants.

First order of business: clothes.

He used the shadows, sneaking and creeping in a manner that would have left ero-sennin with his jaw on the floor. He was actually being stealthy for a change.

He decided to test his mental contact with Kyuubi again. _Hey fox, can you hear me?_

Of course I can, brat. What do you want? 

_Well, uh, I need clothes._

"…"

_Uh, Kyuubi?_

**_Just how the hell am I supposed to help with THAT, kit?_**

_I just wondered if you could help me, y'know, pick colors or something._

**_Oh. Well, I would suggest that before you even think about going…shopping, you need to transform into a less conspicuous form. After all, the ears are a little…odd in Konoha._**

_Okay, then what?_

_Well, you need to choose the shirt and pants, then…_ _Nah, screw the shirt._

**_Well, I'm still fairly sure you'd like to wear pants, moron._**

_Jeez, who peed in your sake?_

**_Just shut it. Anyway, red, blue, or black will be a good color to get._**

_Okay. Black sounds good. You can go back to sleep now, your fuzziness._

…_**Shut up.**_

Chuckling quietly, Naruto watched the proprietor of the clothes store lock up and leave for a lunch break. When he came back, Naruto was going to henge into something else. Then slip in and buy the clothes.

Of course, fate had a different idea.

"Hi!"

Naruto very nearly fell out of the tree when he heard the cheerful voice behind him, saving himself only by digging his foot-claws into the branch under his feet. As it was, it took him a couple more seconds to slowly turn around and face the cheerful (apparently female) voice.

He was then forced to begin telling his jaw to pull itself back up.

Standing on the branch behind him, battle fan strapped to her back. All the while wearing an expression too cheerful to be human. Then the biggest shock of all, a Konoha hitai-ate along with a Suna one. It was none other than Sabaku no Temari.

_Aw, crap._

"What's your name there, handsome?" Temari cooed in a rather seductive tone. She clearly didn't recognize him, and Naruto was inwardly relieved. If Gaara ever thought he had been hitting on his sister, he'd probably beat his ass down so thoroughly he'd have to eat through a straw. If he didn't just squish him flat with his sand first. Of course, he couldn't lie to Temari. Women seemed to have some sort of internal bullshit detector that could detect any lie. He began to sweat, wondering how the hell he was going to get out of this one.

Temari's POV 

Temari was puzzled by the appearance of this total stranger. She'd been absolutely certain she'd seen every hot guy in Konoha, but apparently he'd slipped through her dragnet. She could tell he was nervous around her, and preened inside. Ever since that ass Shikamaru had stood her up yesterday, she'd been on hottie-alert.

And this was a five-star hottie.

_Mine._

She licked her lips, fully aware of every rippling muscle in the stranger's chest. She could feel her blood rushing. This was going to be fun.

"So, you from around here, sweetheart? I gotta say I haven't seen you around. You new?" She could see sweat pop out on the guy's forehead. Oh yeah, he could definitely be going nuts right now.

Naruto's POV _Shitshitshitshitshitshit… how the hell am I supposed to get out of here?_

"Uh, yeah, I'm new around here. I just got out of the hospital, and they had to burn my clothes. Do you think you could help me pick out some new ones? I decided to change my style, so I've gotta get something different, but I have no clue what." _Nice save._ Naruto was happy to find his voice was an octave and a half lower than it had been before the mission.

"Hm, a fashion emergency, huh? Yeah, I could help you with that. Unfortunately, since I'm supposed to be seeing a leaf ninja right now, I don't think I can help you right now. However…" Temari eyed the guy, inwardly comparing him with Shikamaru.

No contest.

"Screw it, the ass is probably just going to stand me up again. All right, cutie, any color schemes in mind?"

"Uh…maybe some red, dark blue and black."

"Oooh, I have the perfect outfit, handsome. I just saw it yesterday, and in that, you would look like a _god_. I mean, you will be fending off girls with a stick!"

"Well, now, that doesn't sound so bad."

"Good, 'cause I'll probably be one of them." With that cheeky remark, she set off, a henged Naruto being dragged around town behind her…

Nine hours later…

**_And that, kit, is why you do not show off your ears in public around women._**

_How was I supposed to know that they'd do THAT, furball? I swear, women are the most confusing creatures on the planet (_A/N: Amen, my brother.)_ and I really should go check in with baa-chan now._

**_Geez, I thought for sure you were dead when that purple-haired ANBU chick joined in the chase._**

_Yeah, I really had to amp it up then, didn't I?_

**_Company coming. Three o'clock, twenty meters._**

_CRAP! That's Kakashi-sensei!_

**_So, scare the hell out of him._**

_I'd rather not, seeing as how he's one of the few people who care whether I live or die in this hellhole._

_**You're no fun**._

_Believe it, baka fox._

Kakashi was reading his book, Icha Icha Paradise, when he sensed an enormous amount of chakra nearby. Normally he wouldn't even have looked, but _damn_ that was a lot of chakra. So he looked.

And looked.

And looked.

He didn't even notice his jaw was hanging open like a trapdoor (not that anyone would know, under his mask). Or even that his precious Icha Icha had fallen to the dust, completely unnoticed. He gaped for a few more seconds and then all but ripped his forehead protector up, revealing his Sharingan. He did a quadruple take, closed his eyes, rubbed them hard, and looked again.

There was only one person he knew that possessed red chakra.

"NARUTO? I thought you were in the hospital! I thought you were in a coma! Hell, for a while, I thought you were dead!"

"Aw, sensei, you were worried about lil' ol' me? I'm touched, but I need to get a few things before you guys banish me back to my hospital bed." With that, the teenaged kitsune ambled off into the shops of Konoha.

Kakashi stood and stared for a second, then scooped up his precious Icha Icha book, and dashed off to walk with his student.

Later 

"So, you're heading home now?" Kakashi was amazed at the amount of weaponry and armor Naruto was buying.

"Well, I've got one more stop. I'm going to Tenten's dad's blacksmith shop. I had a custom weapon commisioned earlier today, and he said to stop by to collect it later."

"So, what kind of weapon is it?"

"Don't know. Just wait outside and find out."

"You're no fun."

"Believe it, sensei."

When they reached the blacksmith's shop, Naruto asked his sensei to wait outside.

"It's beautiful. Thank you."

"No problem, Naruto. Just come by any time you want it sharpened."

"Will do. Thanks again."

Kakashi straightened, popping out the kinks in his back. Naruto had been in there for a good twenty minutes, and Kakashi was dying to see his mystery weapon.

"Here it is, sensei."

"A chain whip? Isn't that a bit kinky, Naruto?"

"EWWW! Baka sensei! This is a battle whip, you old hentai!"

The whip seemed to be alive, twisting and coiling around Naruto's arm. It was a deep-red handled chain whip. The barbs seemed to be black, but they shimmered in the evening sun. The tip was an eight-pointed barb that was made of a strange, pure-white metal. In all, it looked rather intimidating.

"What are you going to call it?" Kakashi asked quietly.

Naruto looked a bit nonplussed, but he adopted a thinking pose, and proceeded to mull ideas in his head.

"I think I'll call it…Demon's Tail."

Chapter Six END

Yah, I know I said Ino would wake up in this chapter, but that was then, it is now exactly midnight, and I'm a walking dead man. So that's next chapter. Please Review!

Ja Ne!

ScionofKyuubi


	8. Chapter 7

Hey, everybody! Sorry I took so long to update, but I've been writing a challenge fic for one of my reviewers, and I completely forgot. Go ahead and flame me, I probably deserve it. I'd like to implore you all to read my new fic, Glass Wings. It's currently the only story with the pairing of Naruto and Inuzuka Hana! W00T! And yes, I have changed the name of this story to Precious People. I hope no one minds. If you do, flame away! I really don't care. I'd also like to thank every one of my reviewers, I love you all and please keep reading. Alrighty, on with the fic!

Precious People 

By ScionOfKyuubi

Chapter Seven

**Flashback**

Naruto stifled a yawn. It was two in the morning, and he'd been up all night, putting in place the mother of all pranks. Even with his rather illustrious career of pranks, this one definitely topped painting the Hokage monument. Of course, the shopkeepers had looked at him rather oddly when he'd bought eight buckets of glue, twenty pounds of glitter, and eighteen yards of ribbon. _Heh heh. Now to finish putting the bull in baa-chan's office. Oh, man, her expression is going to be priceless._ The fox-like ninja grinned evilly. She'd never see it coming.

**Seven-thirty AM**

Tsunade grumbled, becoming uncomfortably aware of the sun in her eyes. _I knew I should have had the windows face west instead of east._ She began to turn over, but froze when she heard a soft snorting emanating from the corner of her office. As she lifted her head, she heard a snicker, followed by a few seconds of silence. When her head was fully up, she realized that there was a bull in her office.

A very _large _bull.

And Naruto was right behind it.

Holding a kunai.

_Oh shit._

The next events would only be recalled later, and with some imprecision.

Naruto swung the kunai in an arc of silver, catching the bull in the hindquarters with the flat of the dagger. The bull let out an animal scream, and charged the first thing it saw, which was, not coincidentally, Tsunade. Fully awake, she leaped over her desk, vaulting the enraged animal and landing next to her door.

She felt a tripwire trigger a trap, and she dodged to the right-

Only to catch a small avalanche of glue as it poured out of the eight buckets stuck on the ceiling. The bull charged her, Naruto having leaped through the open window when she jumped over her desk. She immediately ran out the door-

Falling right into another trap as what must have been twenty pounds of multicolored glitter was dumped on her from a pressure-plate trap right outside her door. Now festooned in glitter, she charged down the stairs-

Only to be wrapped in a crapload of riboons that were cleverly hidden with a genjutsu on the stairs.

She erected a wall of earth around the door of her office with a quick Doton jutsu. She then ran down the stairs, intent on murdering a certain blonde Genin.

Current time- 10:30 AM 

Naruto was laughing like a maniac, having been running from ANBU and Tsunade for three solid hours now. Most of the ANBU were lying on the side of the roads, gasping for breath and holding their sides as Tsunade continued chasing the half-demon shinobi. She wasn't really mad anymore, but she really wanted to punch him for the four-part prank he'd pulled off on her. She still had glitter and glue on her, but most of the ribbons had come off already, and she _still_ couldn't figure outhow the hell he'd gotten a live bull in her office.

"Just stop running, brat! I promise I'm not going to hurt you…much!"

"Give it up baa-chan! You're never going to catch me, so just stop trying! I can run all day, but you can't!"

"That's what you think, brat! When I catch you, I'm going to hit you so hard, you'll land in Rock Country!"

"Come, on, hag! You've got to admit it was hilarious!"

"Actually, it wasn't! And just how on earth did you get a bull in my office without Shizune noticing?"

"That's for me to know, and you to keep wondering about!"

"BRAT!"

And so the chase continued…

**On the sidelines…**

Kiba, Ino, Sakura, Kakashi, and a few non-ANBU shinobi had been watching the Hokage chase some strange ninja around the village for three hours. From Tsunade's appearance and the things she was yelling, he'd clearly pranked her. Ino, having woken up two hours after the little "event" in the hospital, didn't remember Naruto's changed appearance, and she'd been the only one who'd seen it. So no one knew it was the blonde prankster. Then the talking started…

"Five _ryo_ says it was Naruto."

"Are you high, Kiba? Naruto-ku--- I mean, NARUTO is still in the hospital." _Dammit, that's twice I've done that…_

"Ino-pig, did you just call Naruto-baka Naruto-_kun_? I thought you were all about Sasuke!" _Oh man, juiciest gossip EVER!_

"Shut it, Forehead. It was just a slip of the tongue." _I hope…_

"Actually…I think Kiba is right." _Hmm. Naruto and Ino? Nah._

"Eh? How so, sensei?" _That would be some good gossip, though..._

"Because I just heard him call Hokage-sama Old Hag. There's only one person alive who can call her that. And I walked around town with Naruto yesterday, so I know he's not in the hospital."

"WHAT! HE'S SUPPOSED TO ALMOST BE DEAD! WHY THE $! IS HE OUT OF THE HOSPITAL?"

"Geez, try a little louder, Ino, I don't think they heard you in Lighting Country."

"Shut up, dog-boy. When I visited him yesterday, and he looked like a living corpse, all wrapped up in bandages."

"…And you were visiting Naruto-baka yesterday why, Pig?"

"I visited everyone yesterday, Forehead. Naruto just stuck out in my mind because he was so badly injured."

"Hmph. Whatever, Pig. I bet you've got the hots for him."

"SAY WHAT! Is that an insult, Forehead?"

"So what if it is, Pig?"

"Hmm. You're right, Forehead, I do have the hots for him. In fact, I'm going to go to his hospital room right now and declare undying love for him."

"WHAT!"

"In, fact, he already calls me Ino-chan…and I think I heard him call me Ino-hime once. So stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Forehead."

THUD.

"Dude…did Sakura just faint?"

"No, stupid, she's narcoleptic. Of course she fainted."

"Hm." _What's narcoleptic?_

"Hm." _What a moron._

"Hm." _Apparently, Sakura can't take a joke...At leastI think that was a joke._

"…So, did he really call you Ino-hime?" _Kami, I hope not._

"No." _I wouldn't complain if he did, though. OOH! JOKE IDEA!_

"Oh." _Thank Kami..._

"He called me Ino-tenshi (_angel_)." _This'll be good._

THUD.

"Nice one, Yamanaka-san. You just knocked out two ninjas without even touching them."

"I try."

"….Did he really call you…"

"No, Kakashi-san."

"Oh, good. I was afraid I was under a genjutsu right now."

"What, you don't think I could get him to call me Ino-chan?" _OLD PERVERT!_

"Wait a minute, I never said that." _Oh, crap..._

"You do! Well, guess what, Kakashi-_san­_, not only do I bet I can get him to call me Ino-chan, I bet I can get him to do it in three days or less!" _OH YEAH!_

"Um, okay. Two _ryo_." _What just happened here?_

"Deal!"

And so the wheels of fate began to turn…

Chapter Seven END

All right, I know it was crap, flame away.

I'm running out of ideas on how to get some NaruIno moments in, so review with suggestions! Isn't writer's block a bitch?

As always, REVIEW!

If people have suggestions on how to improve my stories, please email me or send a PM.

Ja Ne!

ScionOfKyuubi


	9. AN

Hello everyone.

I hate to disappoint everyone but this isn't a new chapter; it's the announcement that I'm changing my penname. I just wanted to warn everyone.

As for my fics, I will update, but my hand isn't healing very well, and my wrist is just being stupid. I've also discovered a newfound love for the pairing HarryPotterRowenaRavenclaw. Go ahead and laugh…

Give me feedback for my new name!

Ja Ne!

Ravenclaw's Fox


	10. Not the next chapter, don't throw things

Hello, everyone.

This is Dark Lord Kitsune. I have some news for you., which will probably result in you hating me.

After spending a lot of thought and pain (literally, due to injuries), I am sorry to report that I have stopped writing **_NEW_** fanfiction. I will attempt to continue Wings and Precious, Not sure about Rose, but I doubt it.

Signing off for now,

Dark Lord Kitsune.


End file.
